LETS ALL LAUGH AT PEOPLE WITH DEPRESSION!!

cloud493

Presumably, their just... isn't the funding. To help every person who has it. Counsellors and what not.

DeVore

I said it before, other countries have mental health care, we have Twitter and Boards. (not running down anyone who works in the field, but the funding situation is unacceptable).

howsyourtusk

My mother works for Pieta House, a charity who deal with suicide prevention. They do amazing work and receive no government funding. They are currently being brought online with the HSE so that will change but it just makes me so angry that mental health issues are swept under the rug. I don't want to politicise this thread but I just cannot see how it is fair that corrupt politicians recieve huge pensions when a fraction of that money could pay for a full time counsellor who could literally save lives. It makes me so sick.

Strangely though, it's that feeling of outrage about issues like this that have driven me to change careers. I was almost finished a phd and would have gone into academia but I've decided I've no motivation for that and I want to work in the community sector or something like that. Have an interview for a volunteer position with Le Cheile this morning. They provide mentoring for young offenders. Not being apathetic really helps with my own depression, it's a great release tbh.

Wibbs

mishkalucy wrote: »

does anyone mind if I just throw this out there????
How many people have you heard of recently who have committed suicide?
I have to be honest I am sick to the back teeth as ever few weeks I hear of another suicide.
Does further pressure on people with mental health issues help?
Not in my opinion

Why are we not hearing about this?
Because if the public really knew what was going on and knew how many people were taking their own lives I would hope there would be an outcry

+1 M. I realise personal experience can be skewed, but IMHO the statistic don't come close to measuring the reality on the ground. Suicide is a very serious problem in this country. Of the people I've known/reliably heard of who died by their own hand only a percentage of them were officially added to the stats(never mind those who attempted it, but were luckily saved). A remarkably small percentage.

TBH I don't know how it's possible given coroners etc involved. One situation I was involved in a good few years ago the suicide description didn't appear on the death cert and I know it was, I found him. The family were very religious and had "connections" so maybe that's why? Like you say M I think people would be shocked if they knew the real figures.

We have Gay Byrne fronting road safety campaigns and that's OK, but IMHO the unfortunate stats around that issue pale into insignificance compared to deaths arising out of mental health issues. Indeed some of the road death stats may well be suicide themselves.

Paddy Cow

cloud493 wrote: »

Presumably, their just... isn't the funding. To help every person who has it. Counsellors and what not.

I think it's more the case that as mental health issues aren't a political hot potato, it's not high up on the list of things to sort out. If cancer patients had to rely on charities to get threatment there would be a national out cry.

Mental health proplems, especially something like depression, are a double edged sword because the person doesn't have the self esteem or get up and go (this isn't a dig, I don't know how else to phrase it) to seek help and if/when they do and are rejected, it's more likely to send them into a downward spiral than to inspire them to launch a campaign to get fair treatment.

Even with depression you look totally normal to the outside world. It's hard to get people with no experience of it to truely understand how debilatating it is. There might not be a lot of proper treatment out there but the charities and threads such as this help.

20 years ago there was no such thing as dyslexia, adhd or aspergers, just naughty stupid kids who would amount to nothing. Nowadays doctors, schools and parents are better equipped to deal with these and plenty of kids get the support they need.

It's not perfect but I think if everyone continues to highlight the importance of dealing with mental health problems instead of hoping they just go away, in time attitudes will change and instead of it been seen as something shameful or something you have to deal with on your own, we will reach a stage where it is taken seriously and given the funding it deserves.

This thread is great and long may it continue

boomtown123

I suffer from depression - waited for years to tell my friends -told them - one of my supposedly good friends told me I was only using it as an excuse to be cold and in turn bitchy :eek: However its nice to really know who your real friends are!

ashblag

I suffer with depression and have done since my teens but nothing was done about it untill near my 20's.
My parents were old school i.e: what have you to be depressed about,work it off ect.. So I thought I was so abnormal..was very quiet,never mixed with others well...most time spent alone.
I have been at the point of no return a few times but was saved.
I never realised that I could/should have gone to talk to doctor years before I did.
Depression is an illness,just like diabetes and it's not my fault I have it.
So, yeah I have and will always have depression sometimes I can cope,sometimes I find it to scary.

I'm going through a rough time of it now but there will be better times.



It's hard,very hard to understand that why in a society today where Gay/Lesbian relationships are welcomed that Mental Illness is still so hush hush.
Sorry for the bleedin essay

booboo88

Theres still a stigma attached to depression, how often have you asked someone how they are....they give the same auto pilot answer, and those who dont just seem to be labelled a nag,
quite sad really as its nothing to be ashamed of, we live in a country where its best to bury your head in the head. If you dont say it, its not really there.

stupidusername

I've concluded for myself that I don't have depression, not in the way I've been diagnosed anyway. it's circumstantial. my main issues are anxiety and self esteem. but anyway, just as an update, I've been to 5/6 sessions now, and it's been a complete waste of time, yet again. I've spent all the time talking through everything, not practicing anything related to CBT. I spoke to my counsellor about it, and still nothing. I can't afford to go to someone else now, because that's taken a chunk of money.

DeVore

I did such a good job of masking this thing for years that now its hard for some people to believe what I'm telling them. How ironic is that...

On the plus side, I bumped into a person two months ago who quickly became a good friend who has a lot of experience and has really been a big help. A big help.

My folks are a bit shook up about me seeing a counselor cos it seems like a "drastic step" but tbh I'm really good at the moment and so I'm not too concerned myself.

StupidUsername, dont dwell on it cos you know where that goes. Anxiety and low self esteem have been a plague on me too, but I'm finally breaking free of it after years and years. (Can we just pretend I said something really inspirational to you here, cos I cant think of something but I really hope you get better mate, you've been a big help on this thread).

Princess Peach

I go to a counselling group for eating disorders, but pretty much all of us suffer from depression also.

One thing that came up today was reactions we have received when telling people about our issues, and everyone had a negative story to tell of someone who didn't believe depression was real, told them to hang on, they'll get over it, just weren't supportive.

People had positive stories to tell also but the bad reactions absolutely came out first and its something that has resonated with all of us. The good stories were just told more of an afterthought, kinda like we felt we had to throw it in there to show we know people who are helpful, but the people who weren't probably stick in our minds more.

I know I told some friends and they just pretended the conversation never happened afterwards, never once asked me how I was coping or getting on. And while it does hurt, I can understand why. Its not something they want to talk about, it probably drags them down, maybe they feel like nothing they can say will help.

I guess my point is depression is hard to understand, not pleasant to talk about, but it really might mean the world to your friend if you just ask them how are they are.

starviewadams

I see a psychiatrist in the community clinic once every two or three months for five minutes at the most,I basically go in and am given my antidepressant prescription and a date to come back in two/three months time.

I used to see a HSE psychologist once a week up until last October, but he returned home to Australia and wasn't replaced by the HSE,I was making decent progress with him too, but I've now slipped back into my old non-existent self esteem mindset.

I can barely afford my monthly prescription these days,so there's no way that I can afford to see a psychologist privately.

I attended the community clinic yesterday morning,and the psychiatrist put me on the waiting list to see an occupational therapist because there's no psychologist in the clinic anymore.

Don't get me wrong,I am truly grateful for all the help that I receive from the mainly brilliant staff in the HSE community clinic I attend,but I think it's pretty nasty of the government to be running anti-suicide advertising campaigns etc,when they can't even fund basic public mental health services.

boodlesdoodles

This thread is inspiring in its honesty. I suffer from depression and more recently anxiety brought on by family stuff. My mam is dying and in the last week I've been down so wasn't as attentive as always. I'm the youngest of a large family, and they all know I get depressed. Yet, last night I saw my brother throw his eyes to heaven when I was commenting on a co-worker being off, like because I was off too I was taking the piss. I'm currently on sick because of my depression, a medically certified illness. I bit my tongue. But it demonstrates that there is a long way to go with changing people's opinions about being off when you're depressed. When your own family can't see it as an illness, it shows how far we have to go. I find it sad to think they would be more accepting of a physically debilitating disease. I'm getting better, and one of the steps towards that was to admit I was depressed. It's sad that the people who should love you, think you're a piss artist.

The ironic thing is that brother is so unhappy, that I feel bad for him, instead of speaking up and telling him off for his opinion of me.

Mucky.Bucky

I had two fantastic weeks - last week and the week before although was slightly still kicking myself but I wasn't as harsh on myself.

This week however I felt my mood sliding and was very irritable but that could be due to that time of the month. Came down with a headcold today and am feeling rotten.

My mind keeps wandering too and the liary co(k sucker keeps entering my head. Two weeks going good, now this!

howsyourtusk

Mucky.Bucky wrote: »

I had two fantastic weeks - last week and the week before although was slightly still kicking myself but I wasn't as harsh on myself.

This week however I felt my mood sliding and was very irritable but that could be due to that time of the month. Came down with a headcold today and am feeling rotten.

My mind keeps wandering too and the liary co(k sucker keeps entering my head. Two weeks going good, now this!

Distraction, distraction, distraction! Gotta keep yourself busy, even when sick. Just find something that occupies the mind

DeVore

I second the distraction thing. Don't stay inside your head, it's just not healthy to feed into yourself like that, you need external, new, inputs too

Also, recovery doesn't mean you are going to become an annoyingly happy clappy super positive person all the time. Emotional ups and downs are part of normal behaviour, just don't let them become negative spirals. When I feel that happening its... Get Up, Get Out, Get On... That's my mantra.

Mucky.Bucky

Having an almighty sh1te weekend. Slept very poorly friday night due to the head cold and the old feelings resurfacing. Was booked for extra work this weekend. Had no choice but to get up early yesterday morning. Morning went well. Had a short break in the afternoon. Tired to nap but couldn't. Back to work in the evening feeling like crap. Tired and ill with a sore mind. Took one bite of dinner late last night and vomitted into the plate.

Tired to sleep last night but the head cold kept me awake and my mind was racing with the resurfaced feelings. All in all slept for about 2/3 half hour periods and the rest of the night was spent tossing and turning and grunting flem. Got up a few times hoping that would help and that I'd sleep when I got back into bed but I just dragged my body around like a corpse and didn'd help with getting to sleep at all.

Up again early this morning for work :-( tired. Dragged my feet around.

Finished early today, exhausted and fell straight into bed when I got home. Slept for about 45 mins and woke. Cried uncontrollably for about an hour with all the resurfaced feelings. Eventully forced myself up to look for meds for the head cold. Never got around to doing that at all, all weekend.

I need to sleep so badly.

Lost my wallet too for good measure.

^^^ How do you keep distracted when you have no motivation to do so? A good sleep and I should be ok but not until then, I think.

howsyourtusk

Well, as someone who suffers from insomnia which is related to my anxiety/depression I'll just tell you what exactly works for me.

So essentially when I know I have to sleep that's when I begin to get anxious. I get thoughts of worry and fear that I won't be fresh in the morning and that translates into a self fulfilling prophecy.

It tooks me years to develop a coping mechanism and that is, reading until I literally am so tired I just pass out. I try read non fiction or pulp fiction, something that doesn't require much attention. And I also just settle for the fact that 3 or 4 hours of good sleep is better than restless night with no sleep. So I'd suggest trying the reading thing, just keep going, it might take an hour or two hours before you feel the head beginning to slip away. Good luck

DeVore

Don't know how many times I've lain awake at night worrying about not sleeping before an early flight in the morning... Ironic and stupid!

howsyourtusk

DeVore wrote: »

Don't know how many times I've lain awake at night worrying about not sleeping before an early flight in the morning... Ironic and stupid!

Yeh, gets me too every time.

Someone I know vaguely, just bumped into them today at the shops and they told me they were suicidal. But wouldn't say much else other than they were in counselling, etc,. Offered help but was refused. Chap is stubborn, really worried though, don't know him very well. Hate these helpless situations

Logical Fallacy

DeVore wrote: »

Don't know how many times I've lain awake at night worrying about not sleeping before an early flight in the morning... Ironic and stupid!

I find at the moment when i get very tired that all my CBT tricks break down and everything just gets a whole lot worse. I also have very bad Essential Tremor and that just goes ape**** when i am physically drained.

take everything

CBT for dummies is a decent enough book explaining basic CBT.
Identifying and combating toxic thoughts, how they influence mood, understanding maladaptive behaviours, and ultimately going about changing these thoughts and behaviours.
Might be of help.

El_Dangeroso

Has anyone ever tried chromium polynicotinate for depression? 400mcg per day for a few weeks allows me to get back on my feet enough to address what's causing the depression. My depression is mild thankfully, so I have lethargy, anhedonia, oversleeping, fatigue and anxiety and haven't had a bad bout for a few years when I was working in a much more stressful job. I wouldn't hesitate to go to my GP for something stronger if it came to it though.

ashblag

Feeling sh1t very anxious and gittery right now. Just dont want to face the week.

The King of Moo

First off, I'd just like to say that this a great thread, if only to allow people to get their stories off their chest.

I've had my own running battle with depression. The funny thing is that looking back, I think it was even there when I was a kid to a small extent. I'd remember thinking "So you go to primary school, then secondary, then work, and that's it? What's so great about that?"
I didn't dwell on it and get depressed back then, but I think that the root of the kind of thought a depressive goes through was there.

I think my depression really hit me when I started college. I didn't really know anyone else there at first, and I really hated first year: I felt very alone and completely detached from the people around me, and would inevitably blame myself for this. I got kind of used to it over time, and I got to know people both in college and the place I was working. First year was the worst, but after then I'd still often have fairly long dark periods where I couldn't get enthusiastic about anything and I was very hard on myself.
Sometimes the smallest thing would set me off on a negative train of thought and lead to a really long period of deep depression.
During these periods I would find myself thinking of suicide sometimes.

Over time I think I levelled out a bit and wouldn't have so many dark periods, and when I did they didn't last long.
I still had one very bad period of about six months a few years ago where a series of circumstances left me not working or in college and without a big circle of friends.
Without many distractions, I got into a bad spiral of dark thoughts and had some times when I was just inconsolable and couldn't see any point in carrying on with things.
Luckily I was able to tough it out, and I broke the cycle by deciding to go off on my own to study and work abroad. So I left for a year to do that and had a great time, and even just sorting out the course, job and accommodation on my own gave me a great feeling of self-worth.

Since then I've still had my dark periods, but nothing close to the bad old days.
I think that's also partly due to the fact that I've made a conscious effort to avoid negative thoughts, and getting anxious about things, especially things I have no control over. I've also made sure to keep myself distracted with things I like, and make sure I rarely if ever get bored.
I know that that can be hard for people who are stuck in a dark pit of depression, and it won't make it go away completely, but it's probably the best thing a depressive can do on their own to manage things.

I think I'm at the stage where I can live with depression and manage it. I know I'll still have tough times and you can never know what's going to happen, but I know I'm better equipped to deal with things than I was in the past. There are things I've been through lately and been able to handle like ending a long relationship and pressure in college that I know I would've found really hard to cope with in the past.
I even think depression has given me positive things: it's certainly given me a different perspective on life, and in a way, it's made me more positive! I never get annoyed by little things, partly due to training myself not to get hung up on things, but also because when you've been very low, the little things that other people complain about don't seem so bad. In fact, I bloody hate moaners! You can spot such people: they're not depressed, they just like to whinge and wallow in anger and misery. I try to avoid such people, or at least not indulge them.

Well done to everyone who's posted their stories here: I know how hard it can be, and hopefully people going through a tough time can get some comfort from it, and see that they're not alone, and that the worst feelings pass eventually.

Mucky.Bucky

howsyourtusk wrote: »

Well, as someone who suffers from insomnia which is related to my anxiety/depression I'll just tell you what exactly works for me.

So essentially when I know I have to sleep that's when I begin to get anxious. I get thoughts of worry and fear that I won't be fresh in the morning and that translates into a self fulfilling prophecy.

It tooks me years to develop a coping mechanism and that is, reading until I literally am so tired I just pass out. I try read non fiction or pulp fiction, something that doesn't require much attention. And I also just settle for the fact that 3 or 4 hours of good sleep is better than restless night with no sleep. So I'd suggest trying the reading thing, just keep going, it might take an hour or two hours before you feel the head beginning to slip away. Good luck

I just love this response. I could see how that would work. I wouldn't have the concentration or the attention span for reading though.

Deus Ex Machina

take everything wrote: »

CBT for dummies is a decent enough book explaining basic CBT.
Identifying and combating toxic thoughts, how they influence mood, understanding maladaptive behaviours, and ultimately going about changing these thoughts and behaviours.
Might be of help.

CBT also stands for cock and ball torture in the S&M world. There isn't, as yet, any evidence favouring this as a treatment for depression.

howsyourtusk

Mucky.Bucky wrote: »

I just love this response. I could see how that would work. I wouldn't have the concentration or the attention span for reading though.

But that's the whole point, you want something that loses your attention, that makes you sleepy! So for me it's non fiction or pulp but for you it could be a magazine or something ****e in the newspaper, I dunno, just anything that you can read without any effort until your body simply shuts down

The King of Moo

howsyourtusk wrote: »

My mother works for Pieta House, a charity who deal with suicide prevention. They do amazing work and receive no government funding. They are currently being brought online with the HSE so that will change but it just makes me so angry that mental health issues are swept under the rug. I don't want to politicise this thread but I just cannot see how it is fair that corrupt politicians recieve huge pensions when a fraction of that money could pay for a full time counsellor who could literally save lives. It makes me so sick.

Strangely though, it's that feeling of outrage about issues like this that have driven me to change careers. I was almost finished a phd and would have gone into academia but I've decided I've no motivation for that and I want to work in the community sector or something like that. Have an interview for a volunteer position with Le Cheile this morning. They provide mentoring for young offenders. Not being apathetic really helps with my own depression, it's a great release tbh.

It's funny, I'm in the same position. I think I just find academia too detached from reality, especially as I'm doing research in the arts.
I don't feel like I need to be saving lives or changing the world, but it's important to me to feel that my work is at least of some value to some people.
I'm thinking of training to do secondary teaching, as I've already some positive experience of teaching secondary-school kids that I've really enjoyed.

howsyourtusk

The King of Moo wrote: »

It's funny, I'm in the same position. I think I just find academia too detached from reality, especially as I'm doing research in the arts.
I don't feel like I need to be saving lives or changing the world, but it's important to me to feel that my work is at least of some value to some people.
I'm thinking of training to do secondary teaching, as I've already some positive experience of teaching secondary-school kids that I've really enjoyed.

I'm in the arts too, education. Although the project has great scope to help those at third level I just feel that's not what I want to do tbh. I couldn't teach second level as I don't feel there's enough creative scope inside the system, it's too rigid and that would annoy me. So I'm just gonna pursue a few things. Good luck with the teaching though!